My husband had a beautiful mind. He was an artist, a naturalist, a teacher, a businessman, a husband, dad, grandpa and great grandfather. Most of all, he loved the Lord. The image I’m sharing today is what this stone originally looked like when he gave it to me many years ago. He had a knack for creating beautiful lettering because of his early training in the printing industry. It has since faded, but the words remain in my heart. I will keep it as one of my greatest treasures until I die.

It was a year of many disappointments, losses, struggles and trouble. We had recently moved into a beautiful home, which far surpassed my wildest dreams. We celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary, turned 50 and watched our oldest daughter descend the open staircase to the foyer in her wedding gown. Our son moved in with friends and our youngest daughter began her training to be a cosmetologist. Soon this huge home would be way too big for us.

I guess God knew that too. We were in the house for two years when the economy took a nosedive and the advertising business resulted in a big hit. Since this was the source of our livelihood, we hit rock bottom when the bank called in the business loan, forced us into bankruptcy and the dream house went into foreclosure.

For many, this would’ve been the beginning of the end of a marriage or at least created tremendous tension. Looking back at this time, is easy now, because we survived it. Not by what we did, but by the grace of God. Our journey on this planet is not going to be perfect, but what we have to look forward to will.

We celebrated our 60th anniversary a couple years ago. I am reminded of the stone he gave me so many years ago. The rock is just a rock with words on it, but for me it’s a reminder of our true ROCK – Jesus, who continues to bear our burdens. When Paul went to heaven a year and a half ago, I could lean on my Savior and know that He was still in control of anything that would come my way.

The job description in Proverbs 31 explains what is required of wives. The partnership of marriage is more than a few words exchanged on your wedding day. It requires a great deal of patience, faith, perseverance, fortitude and working things out. All of humanity has fallen short of what God expects. There is good news. God loves us no matter what mistakes we’ve made. He cares about us as His children, even when things aren’t perfect. He looks beyond our imperfections and forgives us. He wants us to be with Him in eternity and we will be, because of His perfect love.

THANK YOU, JESUS, FOR ANOTHER DAY!